Radio Listening

U.S. Congress

SNAPSHOTThe election of 2004 gave us a clearer indication
of the political make-up and direction of Minnesota national politics and it
wasn't particularly surprising: the state is evenly split between red and blue.
The state re-elected all incumbent members of Congress and maintained four Republican
and four Democrat members. Of the eight congressional seats, only two or three
seem to be "in play" at any one election. Typically, this is the 6th
District -- a swing district that stretches from Woodbury to St. Cloud. But this year, the resignation of long-time 5th District Rep. Martin Sabo has left that seat and race wide open in a heavily DFL District. As the election year advances, many analysts are keeping an eye on President Bush's popularity ratings, to try to figure how they may translate on congressional races.

District Finder

Answer questions about major issues and quickly learn which candidates share your views. You'll be able to learn more about candidates and see how your results compare with those of others who take the survey.

Minnesota Public Radio is providing live, customizable election-night results that you can easily include in your own Web site or blog. You can customize which races to track, and the style of the display.

Polls suggest the war in Iraq will be a major issue for voters in the November election. The two leading candidates in Minnesota's 2nd Congressional District are on opposite sides of the war.
(07/26/2006)

Four of the DFLers seeking to replace retiring 5th District Congressman Martin Sabo debated the war in Iraq, health care and poverty issues Monday. The four DFLers agreed on a number of major national issues, but tried to differentiate themselves based on their experience.
(07/24/2006)

Matt Entenza, the DFL-endorsed candidate for attorney general dropped his candidacy Tuesday, setting off a flurry of last-minute filings for the September primary. Five DFL candidates are now in the running.
(07/18/2006)

DFL Attorney General candidate Matt Entenza says he's horrified and embarrassed by revelations that a Chicago firm he hired dug for dirt on current DFL Attorney General Mike Hatch. He says he will apologize to Hatch, his fellow Democrat, the party's endorsed candidate for governor.
(07/13/2006)

Republican Gil Gutknecht is running for re-election in Minnesota's 1st Congressional District, long considered the most conservative in the state. But Democrats say that may be changing, and predict Gutknecht will be vulnerable this time around.
(07/07/2006)

If elected, Rep. Keith Ellison would be the first African American congressman from Minnesota and the first Muslim congressman in the nation's history. But Ellison's past, in particular his relationship with the Nation of Islam, are causing some Jewish activists and others to question if he's the best candidate.
(06/30/2006)

Patty Wetterling locked down the DFL
endorsement in the 6th District on Saturday, setting up what
promises to be a rip-roaring battle for Congress with the GOP's
conservative candidate, Michele Bachmann.
(05/13/2006)

Patty Wetterling and Elwyn Tinklenberg both want to grab Mark Kennedy's House seat for the Democratic Party. They make their cases to the voters in Minnesota's 6th Congressional District.
(Midday,
05/10/2006)

If elected, Keith Ellison would be the first African American congressman in Minnesota history. But the endorsement doesn't guarantee that he'll be DFLer on the November ballot because several Democrats say they'll run in a September primary.
(05/06/2006)

Bachmann easily won the endorsement contest Saturday in Monticello and is looking ahead to the November election. Her three challengers say they are sticking to their pledge not to run in a primary.
(05/06/2006)